


The Kind Of Trouble You Can Taste

by brokenhighways



Series: The Thrill [2]
Category: Hit the Floor (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Sequel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-26
Updated: 2017-07-26
Packaged: 2018-12-07 09:57:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11621205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brokenhighways/pseuds/brokenhighways
Summary: Zero wasn't lying when he said that he's never really done this whole ‘relationship’ thing before.





	The Kind Of Trouble You Can Taste

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, it's a series now! I have no idea why, especially considering that I am certain the first one was accidental bad!fic but people seemed to like it and I kind of wrote more. And more. So voila, series. This is still extremely self-indulgent, but I hope that you enjoy it!

i.

If there's one thing that Zero didn't think he'd hate as much as he does it's _dating._ He's dated people before, but that was usually a precursor to him getting laid.

Dating Jude is a precursor to _more_ dates and he's getting tired of being dragged to exhibitions and dinners and whatever the fuck that art performance show was last night. Luckily for him, most of the dates Jude has dragged him on are so uninspired that the press haven't caught wind of them.

“Maybe that's the point,” Clive says, when Zero gripes it about it on the way from the airport. He's fresh off a great performance in a charity game the Devils just played in New York and looking forward to seeing Jude, but he's probably going to fuck everything up badly if it's another puppet show. “Maybe he's picking places where you can go without anyone hassling you.”

Zero rolls his eyes. “I'm not _that_ famous. We could go to England. No one would bother us there.”

Clive stares at him. “You want Jude to take you to England on a _date_?”

It sounds stupid when Clive phrases it like that, but it was just a suggestion.

“Do you _remember_ that puppet show, Clive?” Zero says. “Think of that and multiply by twenty and you've got the sum of our... _relationship_.”

The word sticks on his tongue and from the perceptive look on Clive's face, he doesn't miss it.

The thing is that Clive's right. Zero knows that Jude's picking these dates because he thinks that Zero's some kind of jet setting Casanova who doesn't understand the necessity of calming the fuck down every now and then. He's going by the image of Zero he’s seen online or in glossy magazine and trying too hard. It's endearing in a really annoying kind of way, and he hasn't had the heart to say anything.

Until the puppet show.

“Look, when I first started dating my wife, we had dinner once a week and caught a movie now and then. Most of the time we just hung out. The difference between you and I is that I'm just a regular guy. You're a baller with indisposable income. He's could be trying to compete with that.”

Zero wrinkles his nose, “Or maybe he just has really bad taste in entertainment?”

Clive snorts and shakes his head disparagingly. “I have no idea what he sees in you.”

_Neither do I,_ Zero thinks morosely, but he's not stupid enough to voice it.

ii.

Jude is perceptive and it's halfway through a Harry Potter viewing at a local theater that he starts to wonder if he's being fucked with - and not in a good way.

“So, this is a fun date,” he says conversationally. “Yay for us.”

Jude looks over from where he's been nibbling on their sweet and salted popcorn. “Are you being sarcastic?”

Zero clears his throat. “Uh, no. This is great. I…love this movie.”

Jude's face twists and in that moment Zero knows for sure that he's in the middle of falling for a well executed trap. Clive's advice suddenly echoes in his mind.

_Just be honest. It'll be better in the long run._

“What's the name of the movie?” Jude asks.

Zero looks up at the screen and instead of quitting while he's ahead, he tries his luck. “Harry Potter and the…Dungeon of...Dragon... Sauce.”

_Dammit, he should have said_ **_claws_ ** _._

Jude's mouth begins to twitch as he's talking and by the time he's done it's obvious that Jude doesn't know whether to laugh or be pissed.

“Let's talk outside,” is all he says.

iii.

_Outside_ is really Zero's car and _talk_ is really drive home in silence while Jude ignores his questions. By the time they reach Jude's apartment, Zero's not sure what he's done wrong or how to fix it.

So when Jude finally says, “You know, maybe this isn't going to work out?” he's even more confused.

He definitely wasn't expecting _that._

Zero is a lot of things: impatient, somewhat messy, loud, afraid of rejection and occasionally, someone who runs away from spiders.

One thing that he's not is someone who gives up easily. He didn't give up on his dream to play basketball, or his desire to punch his foster father square in the face when he finally decided that enough was enough.

He's not about to give up on _them_.

“How about we slow down a second,” he says in what he hopes is a rational tone. “You can tell me why you're upset and I'll do my best to explain my end of things.”

Jude glares at him. “You hate _every single_ date that we've been on. Especially the puppet show, which by the way, was created by an old college friend of mine.”

Zero doesn't react to that because college friends or not? That show was a disgrace to _humanity._ Damn straight he hated it.

“Jude, if I hated the dates, I would have said so,” Zero replies, because Jude has no concrete way of proving that he hated them.

“Clive told me that you hated all of them.”

_Fucking. Clive._

Zero's going to _kill_ him.

“What have I told you about talking to Clive?” Zero says, because nothing good ever comes out of them talking. Clive has a big fat mouth and Jude has a face that says _tell me everything._ It's a recipe for disaster and Zero's always left to do the cleaning up.  

“If it didn't take you five hundred years to get ready, I wouldn't have to talk to Clive to pass the time,” Jude retorts, narrowing his eyes before he adds, “And don't say _I put a lot of time and effort into looking this good._ Not with that haircut, you don't.”

_Ouch._ Zero finds himself running a hand through his bleach blonde hair self-consciously.

Maybe it's time for a change.

Before that, though, he needs to nip this argument in the bud before it gets started.

“I'm sorry for not being honest about our dates,” he apologizes. “I guess I was just trying to be a good... _boyfriend._ I wasn't kidding when I said that I have no idea how any of this works.”

Jude sighs mournfully. “It’s not your fault. You're a star basketball player and I'm a physical therapist. I'm not a party and clubbing kind of guy but I also don't want to bore you death either so I guess I ended up overcompensating a little.

“They weren't _that_ bad,” Zero hears himself saying even though they were. “I mean, with the exception of that puppet show. That gave me nightmares. But just because I didn't like what we were doing doesn't mean that I didn't have fun.”

Add _terrible liar_ to the list of things that Zero is and _good at worming his way out of tough situations_ to the things that he isn't.

“Why did you even keep on agreeing to meet me at these places anyway?” Jude asks. “You're not the kind of guy who does things that he doesn't want to.”

_I am when it comes to you,_ he thinks.

“All of these dates might be questionable, but I keep going in them because it means I get to spend time with you, “Zero says. “That makes them worth it. With the exception of the puppet show. That was just fucked up. On every level.”.

“Enough about the puppet show.”

“I'm just saying.”

Jude rolls his eyes and leans back into the leather, his fingers drumming on his knees silently. It's one of his nervous tics and Zero braces himself for the word babble that's about to come his way.

“It's just that I'm not the world's most interesting person,” Jude says. “Like, take a moderately interesting person and shave off a little and you get me. Before we met you were jet setting, partying, going to all of these events. I guess I didn't want you to think that I'm boring. Even though I am. And _please_ don't mention the puppet show.”

Zero quirks an eyebrow. “I think the fact that you took me to that thing proves that you're not boring. You could have played it safe but you didn't. And, hey, it'll give me something to talk about the next time I'm on some shitty radio show and they want to talk about something _besides_ ball.”

“Really?” Jude deadpans, and Zero realises that he probably should have phrased that differently.

“The point is that I might have thought that the dates were awful - like, truly, truly awful - but they weren't boring. That poem at the open mic night about liberating yourself is always going to come in handy when I need to laugh during a commercial.”

Jude's practically pouting at this point and it would be hilarious if it wasn't so adorable (and yeah, Zero's just rolling with the cheesy thoughts at this point. It's easier than judging himself).

“You know you could actually pick where we go for once,” Jude says with a contemplative look. “I'm sure you can come up with something.”

Zero stops to consider this. “Does my hot tub count as a date?”

Jude rolls his eyes. “No, it doesn't.”

Zero grins at him, an eye roll is practically a sign that their 'argument’ is over.

“Hey, that thing has fifty-nine settings, that's fifty-nine dates right there,” he replies.

Jude gives him a look that says he's not even going to justify the comment with response, but he doesn't need to because Zero's not done yet.

“It's a shame that it doesn't have ten more settings,” he adds with a sly grin. “That would be a good number for us.”

Jude rolls his eyes again and says, “There's something wrong with you.”

“I've heard that enough times that I now take it as a compliment.”

iv.

Despite the hot tub wisecracks, Zero sets up a dinner date because he doesn't want to hear anything about how he's leaving Jude to do everything and also because Clive's snide comments have been getting to him.

“I'm only doing this because I get a free meal out of if _and_ we get to stay at your house,” Clive says from where he's taking up too much of Zero's couch. “When I said that you had to come up with something, I didn't mention anything about a _double_ date.”

“I'm only doing this because apparently dating means that _I_ have to pick what we do occasionally,” Zero complains. “Never really made it this far before.”

Clive pauses their video game just as Zero's character is about to decapitate his. Zero rolls his eyes as he tosses the controller onto the couch.

“I have to admit, you've lasted much longer than I thought you would,” Clive says. “I think this is the longest you've ever been with anyone.”

“Really?” Zero asks even though it's telling that there's no one else that springs the mind.

Clive's amused expression slowly melts into one of horror. “Forget I said anything. I don't like that look on your face.”

“Why not?” Zero demands to know. He's really got to work on the overly expressive face thing, especially when he's around Clive.

“That's the same look you had twelve hours before I had to pick you up from a White Castle parking lot, take you the hospital to get your stomach pumped. Oh and I broke my LaserJet primer trying to print out the five hundred non disclosure agreement that I knew I'd need. My wife _still_ hasn't forgiven me for that.”

“I bought her a new printer,” Zero says defensively. “Plus your wife _loves_ me.”

Clive snorts. “I’m sure she does, but when this double date goes tits up, don't say that I didn't warn you.”

“I think that tonight is going to be great,” Zero says confidently. “Just relax.”

v.

The night is an unmitigated disaster.

vi.

Clive snores.

That's all that Zero can comprehend as he stares at the huge frame currently squished on the couch. He came down to get a glass of water _and_ a baseball bat before he realised that horrible sound was coming from Clive.

“Oh, gosh, has he been snoring like this the whole time,” Jude asks after he comes padding in. He brushes a hand against Zero's neck briefly before he turns and disappears out of the room.

When he re-emerges two minutes later, Zara, Clive's wife, is in tow.

“ _This_ is what I have to put up with every night,” she gripes, pointing at Clive's heaving body. “Along with the general incompetence.”

She makes a disgusted noise and storms out, leaving Zero and Jude with twin expressions of confusion.

“What the hell was that?” Zero asks. “From last night to one minute ago. Is that what being married is like?”

Jude laughs warmly even though there's nothing funny about what transpired last night.

At first, the conversation was going really well, and the food even better. Zero and Clive were telling some stories about his playing career thus far. Usually, they'd keep it strictly PG, but Jude asked for some clarification on some questionable pictures of Zero stumbling out of the Bellagio during an All-Star break a few years back and Clive was only too happy to tell the story.

While Jude laughed away, Zara's face got darker and darker until she snapped and said, “That was the weekend my mother ended up in hospital you _asshole_. You told me that Zero was seriously sick, not that he caught food poisoning from some tainted sushi he got from a hooker.”

“Actually, she was a--” at that point Jude cut Zero off with a well-timed kick to the shin, and he held off from pointing out that she'd been an _exotic dancer_ and not a hooker.

It spiralled from there before culminating in a huge screaming match and Clive attempting to drink himself into a stupor before Zero cut him off.

Now, here they are, caught up in the middle of a domestic argument that Zero _probably_ caused.

“One of us has to go after her,” Jude says as matter-of-factly.

“You're kidding, right? It's like watching your parents have an argument. We're the innocent ones here, Jude. Mommy and Daddy have to sort their own shit out.”

“My parents used to fight all the time,” Jude recalls wistfully. “Oscar left when I was seven so that's mostly what I remember. Arguing.”

Zero shoots him a sympathetic look because he's been there himself. His foster parents used to have epic fights. Back then, as kids, none of them knew any better. They didn't know that Leo and Carla treating each other like punching bags wasn't normal.

He knows what dysfunction looks like and it isn't pretty.

“We both know that I'm not good at emotional conversations,” Zero says, going back to what Jude said initially.

“She's your _friend,_ I barely know her,” Jude argues, with a glint in his eye that seems to scream _I know that you just changed the subject on purpose._

“Fine. Rock, paper, scissors it is,” Zero says.

Jude laughs for a full minute before he realises that Zero isn't joking.

“Fine,” Jude says reluctantly. “Best out of three.”

What Jude doesn't know is that Zero is an unheralded champion of rock, paper, scissors and he loses all three rounds. However, Zero's not a complete dick. Half of Zara's beef with Clive is down to him constantly needing a babysitter. This has nothing to do with Jude.

“I'll go,” he tells Jude. “Can you wake Clive up before he gives all of us migraines? My head is practically vibrating.”

vii.

Zara is sitting in the kitchen with her cell in her hand. She straightens up when she sees him and sweeps her loose blonde hair into a ponytail. She's the complete opposite of Clive in every way. Quiet, overly focused on her appearance and way too serious but Zero likes her.

“How are the kids?” he asks. Despite the fact that Clive's almost always around, Zero never stops to consider the rest. Yeah, he pays Clive well, but still, he should be around for his family.

“They're good, doing great,” she says with a proud smile. “Our oldest is off to college this fall, and I guess, in a way, we have you to thank for that.”

It takes Zero a while to remember what she's talking about, but eventually it comes to him.

Clive was bilked out of his savings by that crackshot assistant of his, including his daughters college fund. Zero's not one for handouts, but after all Clive's done for him, the man deserves to be able to afford to send his kids to school.

“What's the point in having all of this money, if I can't put it to good use, huh?” he says with a nonchalant shrug.

Zara shakes her head. “We wouldn't have to accept handouts if he'd been careful around his 'assistant’”. The last word is accompanied by air quotes and Zero blinks at her.

There was one person getting acquainted with the assistant but it sure as hell wasn't Clive.

“Look... if anyone is to blame for what happened, it's me,” Zero admits sheepishly. “I'm pretty sure she meant to scam me and not Clive. We dated, I dumped her and she wanted to get back at me. I offered to repay him all of the money he lost, but he said no.”

Zara laughs bitterly. “Of course he did. He's too fucking stubborn. We're up to our eyeballs in debt. We had to remortgage our house, pay for my mom’s surgeries and...I don't know why I'm telling you this. Or why I ruined last night. I'm sorry.”

If there's even been a conversation that Zero isn't equipped for it's this one. He's been looking after himself for so long that the thought of providing for anyone is alien. He pays his employees whatever his team tells him to and he's never really thought about whether or not it's enough for them to live on.

“It’s fine,” Zero says. “Last night was my terrible attempt at setting up a nice date. Ergo, everything that happened was my fault.”

Zara snorts but she doesn't reply.

“This might not be my place and all but Clive adores you, and he's a great employee. Part of the reason why I invited you over here is to tell him that he's getting a promotion. That means more money, better insurance and other stuff…”

“Really?” Zara seems skeptical and Zero finds himself nodding emphatically.

She narrows her eyes. “I know what you're doing.”

He shrugs. “I have no idea what you're talking about.”

viii.

The grateful expression Clive shoots him just before he leaves is enough for Zero to feel like he's rectified the mess he created. His financial people probably won't be too happy with him, but it's not like he can't afford to pay Clive a little extra.

“That was eventful,” Jude says when he flops down onto the couch besides Zero.

Zero looks over at him with a sigh “I guess I win the award for _Worst Date_ so far. That was worse than the fucking puppet show.”

To his surprise, Jude smiles. “Actually, it wasn't that bad. I think my favourite part was when you defended Clive and tried to rectify the situation. Oh, and the part where you're paying his kids tuition. Someone might think that you actually have a heart.”

“Don't be fooled, Jude,” Zero says. “I'm still the same asshole you agreed to go out with.”

Jude hums but he doesn't reply.

“You were listening?” Zero asks, because he didn't consider anyone listening in when he was talking to Clive's wife.

_“_ Just in case I needed to rescue you,” Jude explains. “I know that tact isn't your strong point.”

Zero smirks, “I'm a man of many talents, Jude.”

Jude quirks an eyebrow in disbelief, but he doesn't say anything.

They sit there in comfortable silence for a while and watch the rolling coverage on ESPN until Zero starts feeling like it's time to stretch his muscles. He uncurls himself from the couch and stands up slowly.

_“_ Got any plans for today?” he asks.

Jude looks up at him sleepily. “Do you need me to leave?”

“No, stupid, I'm just asking,” Zero says. “Thought you might want to play some one-on-one. The winner gets to pick what we do tonight.”

Jude grins lazily. “You're on.”

ix

They get into their first major argument over some questionable pictures of Zero with a tall brunette at some event he was required to be at. Truth be told, he has no idea who she is but the picture doesn't tell anyone that. The picture screams _Zero smashing new girl._ Literally; that's what the caption implies. The actual article is even worse. Some jackass claims that Zero and the mystery girl were all over each other.

That couldn't be further from the truth. He spilled his martini on her dress and he was helping her retrieve his olives. That's all.

Clive laughs for a full ten minutes when Zero points this out to him, only stopping when Zero threatens to tell his wife about that time Clive went crazy with their savings at the craps table.

“Have you called Jude about the pictures?” Clive asks when he's driving Zero home from practise.

Zero frowns at him. “No. He should know that it's all bullshit.”

“Just a few months ago you were sleeping with any girl that has a pulse,” Clive points out. “It's not out of the realm of possibility that you had something with the olive girl.”

Zero stares at him. “The _realm of possibility_?”

Clive shrugs. “Hey, I'm trying to expand my vocabulary.”

“Please stop,” Zero snaps. Truth be told, he hadn't even considered that Jude might be upset. Apparently he lives in a fantasy world where misunderstandings don't exist.

He and Clive bicker back and forth until they pull through the gate and down the driveway. Jude's car is already there and Zero finds himself perking up. It's only after three but it feels like it's been a long day. Seeing Jude usually makes things better.

“I'm going to head straight home,” Clive says. “Call me if you need me to rescue you from the doghouse. I still owe you one.”

“You owe me at least _seventy_ , but don't worry, I can survive one day without you,” Zero says as he's climbing out of the car.

“Try to stay out of trouble,” Clive calls and Zero gives him a mock salute before he heads to the front door.

Jude pounces on him before he's even made it past the threshold.

“Lionel sent me this,” he says, brandishing an...A4 print out of the article about Zero fishing out his olives from that random woman's dress.

He sighs and lets his bag drop to the floor. “You should tell her to email you next time instead of wasting paper. We _do_ have to think about the environment.”

“Zero,” Jude says in a tone that screams _don't fuck with me right now._

Zero raises his hands defensively. “It's nothing. It _was_ nothing. I spilled my drink on her and I was helping her clean up,” he tells Jude. “And that maybe involved me trying to locate a few olives. What you see in the other pictures is me taking her details so that I can replace her dress.”

From the way Jude is looking at him, Zero's explanation isn't believable at all. He's starting to think that he should have left out the part about the olive retrieval; it's not really working in his favour.

“You couldn't come up with a better story?” Jude gripes. “You must really think I'm an idiot.”

Zero tilts his head to one side and looks on wordlessly. With all of his girlfriends over the years, when they got upset, he got rid. It was just easier that way and it meant he didn't have to deal with any aggravation.

Jude isn't some fling that he has no attachment to so Zero's not sure how to handle this. He's not about to apologize for something that he hasn't done, and in truth, he's annoyed that Jude is unwilling to believe his side of things.

“So, what you don't trust me?” he asks, trying to keep any accusation out of his voice.

“I did until I saw this!” Jude exclaims, waving the paper around for effect. “Lionel thinks that you're stringing me along.”

Zero rolls his eyes. “Who cares what she thinks? Doesn't she have a Hallmark movie to shoot?”

Jude snorts bitterly. “I care. She's my friend. Obviously you wouldn't know anything about that.”

“Jude,” Zero says warningly, because he's not going to stand there and get insulted in his own home.

“I try to overlook it when we're out because it's a good way to cover up that we're dating but do you realise that you pretty much flirt with anything that has a pulse?”

Zero resents the _anything_ part of that sentence, because he has standards, but that's not what's important here.

“I do not,” he protests. “And if you weren't blinded by your jealousy, you'd know that. You're supposed to trust me.”

“Yeah, well, I guess I don't.” Jude's tone is cold, angry and hard enough to leave a painful imprint.

Zero shakes his head. “Why are you even here then?”

“Oh, don't worry, I'm leaving,” Jude says as he pushes last Zero and heads to the front door.

Zero is more than happy to give way. “Be my guest. Or don't be my guest. Whatever.”

x.

Usually, Zero would call Clive but he doesn't. It's time for him to start sorting out his own mess. So, he calls his personal chef, Maria.

“Did you want me to make anything or not?” she says after she's listened to him talk about the situation for half an hour.

“Can you make me something that says _I'm sorry that you think I did something that I shouldn't have_?” he asks her as he leans against the counter top.

_“_ I can do one better and get you the number of my therapist,” she tells him with a blank look, like she thinks he's an idiot. “Sounds like you could do with one.”

Zero can't tell if she's joking or not, so he just straightens up and asks her to make dinner before slinking off to the couch in the front room.

He's really got to get some _sympathetic_ employees.

Twenty minutes after he sits down and five minutes into the Friends rerun he found on TV, there's a knock at the door and Zero glances up at the time. It's after six, but he's not expecting anyone. With a sigh, he makes his way over to the door and flings it open.

He's sorely tempted to close it again when he sees who it is.

“Lionel,” he says shortly, stepping back to let her in. “Let me guess, you're here to crush my balls into a fine powder.”

“You know, Jude told me about your dates,” she says with a devious smile. “Including the puppet show. I thought for sure that you would break after that.”

Zero eyes her warily. It feels like he's missing something here. After a second, the penny drops.

“He took me on those awful dates on purpose?”

Lionel shrugs. “Just to be sure that you were serious. You _do_ have a certain reputation. I have to make sure that you weren't planning to wine, dine and sixty-nine Jude before tossing him out like you do everyone else.

Zero's mind momentarily falters at _wine, dine and sixty-nine._

_“_ I would never do that to him,” Zero tells her with a steely glare. “Nor would I get myself pictured with some girl. It was just a misunderstanding.”

Lionel smiles sheepishly. “I know. That's why I'm here. I can't tell Jude that I maybe hired that girl as a way of testing you, so I'm here to help you make things right.”

In that moment, Zero's hit by a strong sense of why he's always avoided relationships. They're too messy, too complicated and overly rife with the kind of mental games that he's not interested in playing.

Maybe this is his lucky escape.

He sends Lionel on her way.

xi.

He bumps into Derek at the arena when he shows up for their new jersey launch. He can't really tell the difference between them, but hey, if people want to spend fifty bucks on an extra line or lighter shade of the same red, that's not his problem.

Right now, Derek is his problem.

“I saw those nice pictures of you online,” Derek says with a huge grin. “How did your man take it?”

Zero rolls his eyes. “I have no idea who or what you're talking about.”

Derek chuckles gleefully. “Oh, it's like that, huh? Guess he didn't take it well.”

The sound of Derek's laughter echoes down the hallway as Zero walks away from him. He's so busy muttering to himself that he doesn't see Jude until he walks right into him.

“Uh, hi, Zero,” Jude greets him nervously when he takes a step back. “I've been calling and te you.”

Zero shrugs, he's ignored each and every call and message. Dating Jude is one thing, but whatever sideshow he had going with Lionel is the proverbial straw on the camel's back. If Jude doesn't trust him they have nothing to say to each other. It's that simple.

“I know,” Zero answers when Jude doesn't budge. “I haven't been answering.”

Jude frowns. “I know.”

Zero shrugs. “I guess we both _know_ stuff.”

It's not his best comeback but he's not exactly in the mood. There was a twinge in his back when he woke up this morning and he's desperately hoping that it isn't a recurrence of the issue he had last season. The last thing he needs is for his spot to be in jeopardy.

“Gideon, look, I'm sorry for what happened,” Jude says. He shifts uncomfortably and takes a step back, his eyes darting around like he's making sure no one can over hear them.

Zero swallows at the mention of his _name_ but he doesn't react to it.

“Lionel got in my head and I was dumb enough to listen to her.”

“Yeah, you were,” Zero says, shoving his hands in his pockets for a lack of something to do. “That doesn't change anything.”

Zero doesn't give people second chances to let him down. He usually takes them at face value, believes who they are the first time they show themselves. Jude's sweet, funny, _hot_ and fun to be around, but there's no point in delaying the inevitable.

Without trust, there's nothing to salvage.

It's over.

“What do you want me to do?” Jude asks softly. He clasps his hands together and wrings them hard, like he's trying to expel some nervous energy. “I know that you didn't do anything with that girl. I know that you'd never do that to me. I just...I let my jealousy get the better of me. I was waiting for the other shoe to drop and I guess that was it.”

Zero raises an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? Lionel _hired_ that girl to test me. You can't act like you didn't know that.”

Judging by the surprised and horrified look on Jude's face, he _didn't_ know, but that's not important anymore.

“I had no idea, I swear,” Jude insists, before he looks away and mutters, “I'm going to kill her.”

“You do that,” Zero tells him. “In the meantime, we're done.”

He ignores the crestfallen expression on Jude's face and walks away. Even though there's a heavy feeling in his chest, he tells himself that this is for the best.

xii.

“Do you need me to come over?” Clive asks when Zero calls him to tell him what happened. He's regretting it already because Clive didn't automatically take his side. He's _really_ got to start hiring people who are willing to blow smoke up his ass whenever he needs them to.

“No, I think I'm good,” he snaps angrily.

There's a long pause before Clive says, “I'm coming over.”

“Use your key,” he says before he hangs up.

He's not planning on moving for a long, long time.

Naturally, his doorbell rings loudly twenty minutes later and even though Clive lives forty five minutes away. Still, it's highly possible that Clive was in a sandwich shop somewhere when Zero called him.

With a heavy sigh, he instructs Siri to ' _call my idiot manager_ ’.

After a few rings, Clive answers.

“Is that you at the door?” Zero demands to know.

There's a quiet giggle on the background before Clive answers.

“Uh, no, I haven't left yet?” It sounds like Clive is asking _him_ a question and Zero is momentarily confused until there's more giggling and some low words until Zero realises that he _recognises_ the other voice and he hangs up with an involuntary shudder.

Apparently he's going to have to school Clive on his phone etiquette.

He tosses his phone back onto his bed and resumes channel hopping. He's just gotten comfortable with his mountain of pillows when he hears a loud _thwap_ noise. It happens a few more times and he sits there frozen in time before he realised that it's coming from his window.

After angrily throwing his pillows to one side, he gets up to take a look and he sees Jude standing there, his hand arched as he launches another rock at the window. Zero waits for it to hit the glass before he pushes it open. He's _really_ got to have a word with security about letting people past the gate.

“What are you doing?” he yells down to Jude.

“Trying to get your attention,” Jude calls back.

“By _literally_ tossing rocks at my window?” Zero says, because last time he checked, they're not characters in a reimagination of _Say Anything_. “Do you know how expensive this glass is?”

“I tried calling Clive but I think he's busy,” Jude says. “Can I talk to you?”

“No,” Zero says and he closes the window, but not before he catches sight of the sky which is covered by a maze of angry grey clouds.

“I hope he has an umbrella,” he mutters to himself as he flops back down onto his bed. It's kind of pathetic really. He's a freaking _NBA_ star and it's a Friday evening and he's here _alone._ It's kind of pathetic.

He's in the middle of agreeing with Wendy Williams's take on the latest dumb thing the Kardashians have done when there's a flash, followed by a loud clap of thunder. The rain begins to fall heavily, clattering be loudly against the window. Zero can't help the way his mind automatically trails to Jude.

Still, he sits there and stares at the screen so hard that Wendy's eyes seem to get even wider than normal. His resolve lasts all of a minute before he's up and out of the room and jogging downstairs. He waits by the door because for all of his rock tossing, Jude has a key. Zero gave it to him the third time he found him sitting on the doorstep. It was kind of dumb for him to get past security and still end up waiting outside.

He stands there in the hallway for a few seconds before it he makes his way over the door. He flings it open and true to form, Jude's huddled on the doorstep and barely missing the wrath of the heavy rain.

“You can come in,” Zero says without abandon. The last thing he needs is for Jude to get sick because he didn't let him in. Not because he cares o anything, it just has _impending lawsuit_ written all over it.

Jude unfolds his legs slowly and stands, shooting Zero a small smile before he enters the house. He pulls off his jacket and his blue dress shirt is wet in some spots. Zero shakes his head disapprovingly but he doesn't say anything.

“What are you doing here, Jude?” he asks instead. “I thought that I made myself clear earlier on. It's like you said earlier, this isn't going to work out.”

Jude makes a frustrated sound, and Zero folds his arms. The truth is that he's about five minutes away from folding like a cheap pack of cards. Even though it's only been a few days since the start of the argument he _misses_ Jude. It's kind of pathetic but just seeing him now has chipped away some of the weight buried in his chest.

That's what scares him.

He doesn't want to get too deep, doesn't want to lose himself to someone that has no trust in him. If it feels this shitty after a couple of months of dating, he can't imagine how awful it would be in the long run. Zero promised himself a long time ago that he wasn't going to let anyone make him doubt himself ever again, not after how hard he worked to free himself of the negative mindset his foster parents instilled in him.

Jude swallows audibly. “I came because I know that you think I tricked you, but I didn't. All Lionel said was that I should take you out of your comfort zone. The olive girl was fucked up, I'll admit that. I can't blame Lionel for that because she was just trying to help.”

Zero scoffs. “Oh no, we can blame her.”

Jude smiles humourlessly. “For someone who chased me so hard, you're awfully good at running away.”

A flash of annoyance runs through Zero, mostly because it sounds like Jude's trying to say that this is his fault and partly because it's true.

Running away is how he deals (or doesn't deal) with things. It always has been.

“Sometimes it's either that or I fuck everything up beyond repair,” he admits honestly. “Like us. Let's face it, I have a reputation and regardless of how true is, apparently I can't run away from that. Not even when I'm with the one person that matters.”

Being _Zero_ is one thing, but he's tried to be himself with Jude. He's tried to be _Gideon._ Maybe there's no difference. Maybe he's spent so long being Zero that there's no off switch, he's just that version of himself all the time.

“That's not true, Gideon,” Jude says, taking a step closer. “I could stand here and talk until I'm blue in the face, but all I can say is please give me another chance.”

_Another chance._

It's an alien concept to Zero because one chance is usually all it takes for people to show who they really are. No matter how hard he wants to give in, he's always kept that mantra.

However, Jude chases him back whenever he runs. That's gotta count for something, right?

“Okay,” he says simply.

Jude's eyes widen in surprise. “Okay? I had at least ten more points to make about how sorry I am and why you should give me a chance.”

He sounds so affronted that Zero can't help laughing.

“Save it for our next fight,” he says.

Jude's gaze softens. “I don't want there to be a next fight.”

Zero snorts. “Hate to break it to you, but neither of us are Oprah. I'm a very complex individual and you’re kinda high-strung. We're going to argue, but we need to learn how to listen to each other, I guess.”

Jude makes a point of looking the row of frames pictures of himself that Zero has in his hallway. “Complex?”

Zero rolls his eyes. “ _That's_ the part you focused on?”

Jude grins suddenly. “You know, there's one upside to arguing.”

“What's that?”

“The part where we make up.”

“I _do_ have a pillow with your name on it,” Zero says suggestively, stepping closer to him.

Jude says, “Lead the way.”

They make it halfway up the stairs before stop shooting each other coy looks and finally they gravitate towards each other. Zero's not sure who pulls who, but their lips meet and they're kissing. It's messy and uncoordinated, with their foreheads bumping awkwardly. Zero laughs gently when he moves slightly, and Jude chases after him, reigniting their kiss. His lips are soft and taste like coffee, and Zero can smell a faint hint of his spicy cologne. His back is digging into the hard press of the bannister but he doesn't really care.

In this moment, the only thing that matters is _them,_ so he chases all other thoughts out of his mind and focuses on getting lost in Jude.

  
_Fin_.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! <3
> 
> I promise not to break them up in the next one. That seems to be a running theme of mine. *dead*


End file.
